Frederick Barber

Private Frederick Arthur Walter Barber

Private 5770746 Frederick Arthur Walter Barber
Died 27th May, 1940
Aged 27
Son of Daniel Frederick and Florence Alice Barber, of North Earlham, Norwich.
Inscription - For all of us he did his best. May God grant him eternal rest.

The Barber family in a photograph probably taken around 1933. Fred is on the right, George is next to him and Billy is next to George.

Fred's brother Billy still lives in Sprowston, a suburb of Norwich, with his wife Anthea. They have been married for over 60 years and Billy admits that his memories of Fred are rather limited.

That's not surprising as Billy was born in 1931, the same year that Fred, who was born in 1914, joined the army.

The family have over the years pieced together snippets of information about Fred, however. Fred was one of nine children - three boys and six girls. Billy was the second youngest but was only 10 when Fred died in the massacre. In keeping with so many others, the family were not informed of the way Fred met his end.

As a boy, Fred lived at 1, Crook's Place, Norwich. He attended Crook's Place School. By 1931 Fred became determined to join the army. As he was only 17 his mother refused to sign his forms, not wanting him to be a soldier and telling him that she would "cut his throat" before allowing him to join up. A certain Captain Woodhouse had other ideas and signed the forms for a lad determined to "fight for his country."

The family have established that Fred was a handy featherweight boxer, coming second in an army competition. From 1933 to 1938 he served in India. At Easter, 1938, Fred came home to find the family had left the Christmas Tree up for him as a welcome home gesture.

For a while Fred worked as a head waiter at RAF Honington. He was called back to the army in 1939 and it was almost as if he had a premonition of his own death as Billy and Anthea explained:

"Before he left he dug a hole in the garden and put all his letters in it and burnt them. He said 'I'm digging it deep as it's going to be a long war. Dead men tell no tales.'" Fred never returned!

"We were told that he had died but didn't know anything much until long after the war," Billy said, adding that a number of Fred's supposed comrades turned up at their Norwich home and led them to believe he had died during the evacuation of Dunkirk. Gradually the family put the pieces together and learned about the massacre at Le Paradis. It culminated in Billy and Anthea visiting Fred's grave in Le Paradis Cemetery a number of years ago.

According to Billy, Fred was something of a practical joker. "He played tricks on me," Billy said. One of these ended with Fred throwing Billy into the river at Earlham Park in Norwich. Another trick involved Fred claiming that he could "make smoke come out of his eyes" which ended in painful cigarette burns for brothers Billy and George. Another involved a strange looking silver pig, part of whose anatomy curled up when a cigar was set alight in a delicate part of its body!

Sadly Fred's brother George died fighting at Minturno in Italy on February 5th, 1944, when he was aged 24. He was with the Royal Artillery. Billy was himself called up and spent two years in the Royal Engineers and over three years in the territorials. In an ironic twist, Billy signed up on the day that Fritz Knoechlein, who gave the orders for the massacre, was hanged. Billy's sisters Betty and May are still alive.

Pictures left and above of George, Billy and Fred. Photographs courtesy of Billy and Anthea Barber, May Metcalfe and family and reproduced with their kind permission.

John Head of the Le Paradis Commemoration Group places a cross on the grave of Fred Barber on behalf of Billy and Anthea Barber and Family.

Gunner George Ernest Barber (Fred's brother) died on February 5th, 1944, aged 24 and is buried in Minturno War Cemetery, Italy.